If you have periodontitis, your teeth start moving in the mouth, making tooth loss a reality. However, if you receive gum disease treatment early, you can preserve your natural teeth and prevent the need to search for replacement options.
Yes. Regardless of the stage of infection, you can stop the progression of gum disease. The initial phase is the easiest to manage as it only requires maintaining proper oral care and dental checkups. Further stages will require specialized treatment such as scaling and root planing.
It's never too late to seek treatment for gum disease, and the degree of treatment you require will depend on how advanced it is.
With gum disease, you won't keep your teeth for long. In fact, unlike tooth decay which impacts your smile one tooth at a time, periodontitis can cause you to lose multiple, if not all, teeth at once. Gum disease starts small as a mild form called gingivitis.
But the condition may get even worse if left untreated. They may experience receding gums, loosening teeth, or tooth loss when it progresses into severe periodontal disease. If you wonder if you can live with this disease, the answer is yes.
Good prognosis: The prognosis is considered to be good when there is adequate amount of remaining bone support along with the periodontium, and the patient as well as the clinician has adequate possibilities to control etiologic factors and establish a maintainable dentition.
Foods such as pickled vegetables, citrus fruits, black coffee, and tea can enhance inflammation, aggravate your condition, and slow down the effects of treatment.
In most cases, dental bone loss can be stopped. And with expert periodontal care, you can actually regenerate bone and reverse bone loss.
In some cases, it may be too late for gum grafting to save the gums. If your gums are severely damaged, receding so far back that they expose the tooth's root, or if there is significant bone loss from advanced gum disease, gum grafting may not be able to restore them to their healthy state.
If you ignore the symptoms of earlier stages of periodontal disease, you will shift into stage 4, which threatens a 50-90% chance of irreversible bone loss. Symptoms of this final stage include red, swollen gums that ooze pus, painful chewing, extreme cold sensitivity, severe bad breath, and loosened teeth.
Dental bone grafting is an effective dental technique that inserts a synthetic material where the bone has been lost. This material acts as a framework for future regrowth. After a graft, the jawbone regrows around the structure, creating new bone where a dentist can surgically place dental implants.
Advanced gum disease, also called periodontitis, automatically disqualifies you from getting dental crowns. However, if you are at an early stage of gum infection, you can receive treatment for your gums and still get dental crowns.
The progression of periodontal disease is slow but steady. It only takes four days for plaque to reach its maximum extent, so you'll be able to physically see signs of gingivitis on day 5. Advanced stages of this disease can be seen in as little as a few weeks if you have not tried to reverse the gingivitis.
For example, patients with conditions that affect the efficiency of the immune system, such as diabetes, HIV, Down syndrome, leukemia, etc., can make periodontal disease worse. Those who smoke, use tobacco products, are malnourished, and/or are highly stressed are also at an increased risk.
Prevention and treatment
To help prevent or control periodontal diseases, it is important to: Brush and floss every day to remove the bacteria that cause gum disease. See a dentist at least once a year for checkups, or more frequently if you have any of the warning signs or risk factors mentioned above.
It's important to see a dentist right away if you ever suspect something is wrong with your gums. Both gingivitis and periodontitis can happen faster than you think. If you ever feel like your gums are tender, look red or swollen, or you're noticing pink on your floss or toothbrush, give us a call as soon as you can.
Living with periodontal disease is a challenge because it causes aesthetic complications and severe bone loss in the mouth. Unlike other infections, periodontal diseases silently affect you, causing your gums to become inflamed and bleed. Periodontal disease is not a life-threatening condition.
The Journal of Dental Health recommends periodontitis patients revisit their periodontist for periodontal maintenance every three months. This three-month time frame has been proven effective in keeping the progression of periodontal disease at bay.
This is one of the most expensive procedures as the procedure requires hospitalization, an orthopedic surgeon and an anesthesiologist. These types of bone grafts incur costs between $2500 and $3500. Allograft: Sterilised bone from a human cadaver is used for this procedure.
The cost of dental bone grafts varies widely, depending on the condition of the individual jawbone and the specific needs of the patient. A simple graft that uses synthetic bone usually ranges from $300 to $800 for each implant area.
Eat a healthy diet including plenty of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean protein and low-fat dairy products. Maintain a healthy weight. Get 1000 to 1200 milligrams (mg) of calcium each day from calcium-rich foods and take a supplement only if needed.
In the fourth and last stage, the bacteria is aggressive, bone loss is imminent, and gum recession is serious. You are going to have immense sensitivity to cold and hot temperatures, experience chronic bad breath, and you may lose your teeth. The symptoms of this stage include: Offensive bad breath (halitosis).
Incidents of periodontal disease (gum disease) do increase with age, but gum disease can start at any time. Most people do not begin to show signs, however, until they are in their 30s or 40s.
In most cases, the damage will not be completely reversible, but if you follow the treatment and prevention plan laid out by your dentist, you should be able to see significant improvement. Most people are able to reclaim a 4mm to 5mm pocket depth with proper treatment and ongoing periodontal maintenance.